The words were redefined when I learned that Saint Nicolas travels with what was consistently described as six to eight black men. I asked several Dutch people to narrow it down, but none of them could give me an exact number. It was always six to eight, which seems strange, seeing as they've had hundreds of years to get an accurate head count.The six to eight black men were characterized as personal slaves until the mid 1950s, when the political climate changed and it was decided that instead of being slaves they were just good friends. I think that history has proved that something usually comes between slavery and friendship, a period of time marked not by cookies and quiet hours beside the fire but by bloodshed and mutual hostility. They have such violence in the Netherlands, but rather than duking it out amongst themselves, Santa and his former slaves decided to take it out on the public. In the early years if a child was naughty, Saint Nicholas and the six to eight black men would beat him with what Oscar described as the small branch of a tree."A switch?""Yes," he said, "That's it. Theyd kick him and beat him with a switch. Then if the youngster was really bad, they'd put him in a sack and take him back to Spain.""Saint Nicholas would ?""Well, not anymore," Oscar said. "Now he just pretends to kick you."He considered this to be progressive, but in a way I think it's almost more perverse that the original punishment. "I'm going to hurt you but not really." How many times have we fallen for that line? The fake slap invariably makes contact, adding the elements of shock and betrayal to what had previously been plain old-fashioned fear. What kind of a Santa spends his time pretending to kick people before stuffing them into a canvas sack? Then, of course, you've got the six to eight former slaves who could potentially go off at any moment. This, I think, is the greatest difference between us and the Dutch. While a certain segment of our population might be perfectly happy with the arrangement, if you told the average white American that six to eight nameless black men would be sneaking into his house in the middle of the night, he would barricade the doors and arm himself with whatever he could get his hands on. http://tippinthescales.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/zwartepiet.gif?w=6 4 0" alt="">He considered this to be progressive, but in a way I think it's almost more perverse that the original punishment. "I'm going to hurt you but not really." How many times have we fallen for that

Huggermugger:There's also an odd tradition in Sweden where everyone watches a Disney TV show from the late 1950s.

Ah, Kalle Anka. I've been submitting stories about that on Christmas Eve for the past few years, and they always get redlit. I like how some random Christmas eve broadcast some 50 years ago, probably programmed by some network engineer who just wanted to roll the tape and go spend an hour pigging out in the break room, just struck a chord with people and managed to become a huge annual tradition.

DjangoStonereaver:Came for Zwate Piet. Not at all surprised he would be included on a list from Fox News.

Leaving satisfied.

FTAThe Austrians aren't the only ones that see Christmas as a time to celebrate the dark side. In the Netherlands, the Dutch add a little fear to their holiday celebrations with Zwarte Piet. In a rather racist custom that has persisted to this day, Zwarte Piet, or Black Peter, is Santa's slave who abducts Dutch children that misbehave, taking them back to Spain, where it is said that Santa and Peter spend their off-season. In a scene many Americans would find shocking, the Dutch dress up as Black Peter, donning black face and Afro wigs, in order to accompany Santa. In response to protests against the racist symbol in recent years, Peter's backstory has changed, with some saying his blackface is merely the result of chimney soot.

Yeah, that is real normal and not racist at all. Oh, right. I forgot some people have a boogeyman and anything Fox News says is automatically incorrect and derpy. FAUX NEWS!

My daughter loves watching football with me on sundays, and during the bye-week, she's bugs me about no football. 2 years ago I decided to do Catalonia during the byweek (she was 3yo), and it stuck.

Now, on the Sunday Bye week, we go down to the canyon behind our house to find the Superbow Poop log (which I have decorated and hid). We bring him home, put him in a cardboard box that she gets to decorate, and she feeds him treats for a week. Bonus for me, I get to eat the treats after she goes to bed.

During SuperBowl weekend we close the box, to give him privacy to poop.

During the half time show (which is always horrible), she's entertained by opening up the box full of little goodies.

Good times!!!

(and the song about Catalonia is fantastic, about the kids telling the log to not bring them pickeled herring, or the log will get hit with a stick. We leave that part out)

machoprogrammer:DjangoStonereaver: Came for Zwate Piet. Not at all surprised he would be included on a list from Fox News.

Leaving satisfied.

FTAThe Austrians aren't the only ones that see Christmas as a time to celebrate the dark side. In the Netherlands, the Dutch add a little fear to their holiday celebrations with Zwarte Piet. In a rather racist custom that has persisted to this day, Zwarte Piet, or Black Peter, is Santa's slave who abducts Dutch children that misbehave, taking them back to Spain, where it is said that Santa and Peter spend their off-season. In a scene many Americans would find shocking, the Dutch dress up as Black Peter, donning black face and Afro wigs, in order to accompany Santa. In response to protests against the racist symbol in recent years, Peter's backstory has changed, with some saying his blackface is merely the result of chimney soot.

Yeah, that is real normal and not racist at all. Oh, right. I forgot some people have a boogeyman and anything Fox News says is automatically incorrect and derpy. FAUX NEWS!

Blackface doesn't have quite the same connotations outside the US. It's no more racist in many cultures than dressing as cowboys and Indians. And you can buy an "Indian" outfit in any Walmart.

machoprogrammer:Bungles: Blackface doesn't have quite the same connotations outside the US. It's no more racist in many cultures than dressing as cowboys and Indians. And you can buy an "Indian" outfit in any Walmart.

I would say dressing as "Indian" is pretty racist...

Yet "Indian" outfits, labelled as "Indian" outfits, are in every fancy dress shop in the Western world. Most people outside the US wouldn't even realise there was something even slightly questionable in that.

My point was that Fox's "OMG BLACKFACE!" is incredibly culturally myopic, as if people in Norway give a rat's ass or even are vaguely aware of American cultural taboos, any more the someone in the US is are of Norwegian cultural taboos.

machoprogrammer:DjangoStonereaver: Came for Zwate Piet. Not at all surprised he would be included on a list from Fox News.

Leaving satisfied.

FTAThe Austrians aren't the only ones that see Christmas as a time to celebrate the dark side. In the Netherlands, the Dutch add a little fear to their holiday celebrations with Zwarte Piet. In a rather racist custom that has persisted to this day, Zwarte Piet, or Black Peter, is Santa's slave who abducts Dutch children that misbehave, taking them back to Spain, where it is said that Santa and Peter spend their off-season. In a scene many Americans would find shocking, the Dutch dress up as Black Peter, donning black face and Afro wigs, in order to accompany Santa. In response to protests against the racist symbol in recent years, Peter's backstory has changed, with some saying his blackface is merely the result of chimney soot.

Yeah, that is real normal and not racist at all. Oh, right. I forgot some people have a boogeyman and anything Fox News says is automatically incorrect and derpy. FAUX NEWS!

Bungles:My point was that Fox's "OMG BLACKFACE!" is incredibly culturally myopic, as if people in Norway give a rat's ass or even are vaguely aware of American cultural taboos, any more the someone in the US is are of Norwegian cultural taboos.

JohnAnnArbor:Bungles: My point was that Fox's "OMG BLACKFACE!" is incredibly culturally myopic, as if people in Norway give a rat's ass or even are vaguely aware of American cultural taboos, any more the someone in the US is are of Norwegian cultural taboos.

Norway? The tradition in question is Dutch.

Black Peter is done across northern Europe. I saw it in Norway, so my brain got hardwired to Norway.

I heard that in Japaneveryone just lives in sin.They pray to several godsand put needles in their skin.On December 25th,all they do is eat a cake;and that is why I go to Japanand walk around and say...